Deodorant and germicidal bodies for toilets and urinals

ABSTRACT

DEODORANT AND GERMICIDAL BODIES FOR TOLIETS AND URINALS COMPRISING SUGAR, SOAP, GERMICIDAL AGENT, AND, OPTIONALLY, TETRASODIUM PYROPHOSPHATE OR SODIUM TRIPOLYPHOSPHATE.

United States Patent 3,630,925 DEODORANT AND GERMICIDAL BODIES FOR TOILETS AND URINALS Fred H. Buck, Jr., Boonton Township, Morris County, NJ., assignor to Arrowhead Industries, Inc., Denville,

No Drawing. Continuation-impart of application Ser. N 0. 563,689, July 8, 1966, now Patent No. 3,378,495, which is a continuation-in-part of abandoned application Ser. No. 508,585, Nov. 18, 1965. This application Mar. 11, 1968, Ser. No. 711,892

Int. Cl. Clld 9/50 US. Cl. 252-107 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Deodorant and germicidal bodies for toilets and urinals comprising sugar, soap, germicidal agent, and, optionally, tetrasodium pyrophosphate or sodium tripolyphosphate.

This application is a continuation-in-part of my copending application, Ser. No. 563,689, filed July 8, 1966, now US. Pat. No. 3,378,495 which, in turn, is a continuation-in-part of my application, Ser. No. 508,585, filed Nov. 18, 1965, now abandoned.

The present invention relates to deodorant and germidal bodies for toilets and urinals, and more particularly to compressed bodies in the form of tablets or blocks which can be used in association with toilets and urinals to maintain the same in substantially germ-free, odor-free condition over prolonged periods of time.

It is a primary object of the present invention to provide compositions in the form of tablets or blocks (for convenience the application will hereinafter use the expression tablet to refer to all types of compressed or molded blocks or bodies of substantially solid material) which dissolve slowly as water is passed thereover and which upon slow dissolution release germicidal and the like agents into the toilet or urinal so as to substantially disinfect and thereby deodorize the same.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a method of deodorizing toilets and urinals over prolonged periods of time, measured in days and even weeks, by permitting controlled release of germicidal (including bactericidal and bacteriostatic) agents into toilets or urinals.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from a further reading of the specification and of the appended claims, in which all proportions are by weight.

With the above and other objects in view, the present invention comprises a tablet mainly composed of sugar, water soluble soap and at least one germicidal agent distributed therethrough, the constituents being employed in r such proportions that the tablet dissolves slowly when water is passed thereover and upon dissolution releases sufiicient amounts of the germicidal agent to disinfect the region of release. A further constituent, which is optional, is one or both of tetrasodium pyrophosphate and sodium tripolyphosphate. A die lubricant may also be employed but this serves merely to assist in the fabrication of the tablet and is not an active constituent.

In accordance with the invention, the tablet is placed in a plumbing arrangement of the urinal or toilet type in such position that it is not in contact with water except upon flushing so that the passage of the water thereover during the flushing causes dissolution of a small amount of the tablet and release into the passing water of the germicidal agent. This, for all practical purposes, has the effect of eliminating odors arising from the toilet or urinal, the odors normally being caused by odor producing germs and bacteria which remain in the urinal or toilet. The tablets of the present invention will thus release the germicidal agent upon the flushing of the toilet or urinal over a period of a long time, several days, or possibly even weeks, and thus maintain the toilet or urinal in odor-free condition for the long period of time.

The user is thus freed of the necessity of applying frequent treatments of germicidal agents (bactericides and bacteriostatic agents) or from using mechanical dispensing devices designed to deliver such germicidal agents to the urinals and toilets.

The tablets of the present invention are effective in controlling odors usually arising from urinals and toilets to the point that the same are no longer noticeable. This is accomplished by the regulated release of the germicidal agents which kill or inhibit the growth of the microorganisms which contribute to the development of bad odors. It is not necessary to use perfumes or masking agents to cover up, change or mask these odors, although it is of course possible'to include such perfumes or masking agents in the tablets, if desired.

The tablets of the present invention are simply made by pressing a mixture of the constituents into tablets using ordinary molding or tabletting devices.

In the tablets of the invention, the soap delays the distribution of the germicidal agent, while the sugar, tetrasodium pyrophosphate or sodium tripolyphosphate and water which is present in the soap as water of crystallization and/or water of hydrolysis and in the tetrasodium pyrophosphate or sodium tripolyphosphate as water of crystallization increase the solubility of the tablet to the desired extent so that the flushing water passing over the same will dissolve a sufiicient but not wasteful amount of the tablet and release a sufi'icient but not wasteful amount of the germicidal agent into the urinal or toilet.

Where the tablet is used with urinal bowls which contain no water, the tablet is simply deposited on the drain. The urine and flushing water passing over the tablet thus will dissolve away an amount of the tablet and release the germicidal agent into the water.

In case of urinal bowls or toilets which contain water, it is necessary to suspend the tablets above the water level and beneath the flushing apparatus so that only flushing water passes over the tablets, and the tablet does not remain in the water to be too rapidly dissolved therein.

The germicidal agents which are most desirable for the purposes of the present invention are very strong water soluble or water dispersible agents which are stable in aqueous solutions of soap or soap and tetrasodium pyrophosphate or sodium tripolyphosphate. They may be employed individually or in any combination. Among the suitable agents for the purposes of the present invention are o-phenylphenol and 2,2'-methylenebis-3,4,6-trichlorophenol (which is also known as bis-(3,5,6-trichloro-2- hydroxyphenol) or 2,2'-dihydroxy-3,5,6,3,5',6-hexachlo rodiphenylmethane or hexachlorophene).

Other germicidal agents may be used, including but not limited to quaternary ammonium salts such as p-diisobutyl phenoxy ethoxy ethyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride monohydrate, or benzalkonium chloride, or 2,4,5- trichlorophenol, or benzyl-o-chlorophenol, etc.

The amount of the germicidal agent can be varied within wide limits, although satisfactory results have been obtained with amounts of 25% of the total weight of the tablet, and consequently, greater amounts are not necessary from the economical standpoint.

The preferred soap for the purposes of the invention is tallow soap with a titer of 4143". However, the tablets of the invention can also be prepared with soaps of other animal fats such as grease or red oil or with soaps of vegetable oils such as corn oil, cottonseed oil, soya oil, palm oil, olive oil, etc., the vegetable oil soaps preferably having titers of 36-39". Soaps made from combinations of these fats and oils can also be used.

Such soaps may be made in the so-called pure form, i.e. generally 86-97% and usually 90-93% of pure soap and the balance being moisture, or in the form of built soaps, whose final form includes alkalies such as phosphates, silicates, soda ash, etc., or in the form of soap powders wherein soda ash plus its water of crystallization constitute a part of the finished soap granule.

Phosphate substances, namely sodium tripolyphosphate or sodium tetrapolyphosphate are desirable, but not essential, in the tablets in order to prevent the formation of insoluble lime or magnesium soap films on the tablets or on the urinals or in urinal bowls or toilets. When employed, these materials constitute preferably up to and most preferably 2 to 5% of the tablet. Included in the weight of these materials is their naturally occurring water of crystallization.

To assist in the tabletting or other compressing or shaping operation, a die lubricant is generally incorporated in the mixture. Any conventional die lubricant for soap compositions may be employed with some success but it is found that superior results are attained with the use of talc. Preferred proportions of die lubricant are 3 to 5% of the weight of the entire composition.

It is found that the proper rate of solubility of the tablet to assure sufiicient release of the germicidal agent but without wastefully rapid dissolution of the tablet is attained by providing that 60 to 75% by weight of the tablet be constituted of sugar and to of soap, soap" being defined as hereinabove and thus including, inter alia, any normally occurring water of hydration and water of crystallization.

The invention will now be further described by reference to the following examples which are intended to illustrate but not to limit the invention; all percentages are by weight and based on the total weight of the composition:

EXAMPLE 1 A tablet is prepared by conventional tabletting procedure from a mixture of the following composition:

Percent Sugar 65.25 Cottonseed oil soap 22.5 Hexachlorophene 2.25 o-Phenylphenol 2 Tetrasodium pyrophosphate 4 Die lubricant 4 The tablet is suspended in a urinal or toilet so that it doese not rest in the water but in such manner that flushing water passes thereover. The tablet releases the germicidal agents upon flushing, and the toilet or urinal remains odor-free.

EXAMPLE 2 A tablet of the following composition is prepared and successfully employed as in Example 1:

Percent Sugar 69 Tallow soap 20 Tetrasodium pyrophosphate 3 Die lubricant 4 Benzyl-o-chlorophenol 4 EXAMPLE 3 A tablet of the following composition is prepared and successfully employed as in Example 1:

Percent Sugar 65 Corn oil-sodium soap 25 Sodium tripholyphosphate 3 Benzalkonium chloride 4 Die lubricant 3 While the invention has been described by reference to specific embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims is not limited to the foregoing description but includes all obvious modifications and variations thereof.

What is claimed is:

1. A deodorant and germicidal body for toilets and urinals, consisting essentially of the following constituents in the following weight proportions, based on the total weight of the body: 60 to sugar, 20 to 25% water soluble soap of an animal or vegetable oil or fat and 2 to 5% water soluble or water dispersible germicidal agent.

2. A body according to claim 1, further comprising up to 5% by weight, based on the total weight of the body, of a phosphate substance of the group consisting of tetrasodium pyrophosphate and sodium tripolyphosphate.

3. A body according to claim 2, in which said phosphate substance comprises 2 to 5%, by weight, of the total weight of the body.

4. A body according to claim 3, further comprising 3 to 5% by weight, based on the total weight of the body, of talc.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,296,767 9/1942 Caryl 252138 3,034,911 5/1962 McKee et a] 106-210 FOREIGN PATENTS 510,521 3/1955 Canada 252l07 1,081,993 5/1960 Germany 252-161 LEON D. ROSDOL, Primary Examiner P. E. WILLIS, Assistant Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 25 2106, 109 

